Introduction

We’ve seen solid state drives become very popular over the last couple of years, as prices have continued to drop and consumers are taking notice of the impressive overall system boost that SSDs can offer. And we’ve looked at many SandForce 2281-based drives in particular, and have come away impressed.

Another in the list of SandForce SSDs is the latest from OCZ, the Vertex 3.20. It’s an interesting move because we’ve seen the Vertex 4 already from OCZ, so is this “new” drive a step backwards? Not really, according to OCZ. This drive shares the same features as its predecessor, showcasing the popular SandForce 2281 controller, but this latest version now comes with 20nm NAND flash memory.

Well priced in the mainstream market for consumers who want a dependable upgrade, the Vertex 3.20 looks to offer improvements without the premium cost we typically see of similarly-designed SSDs. So can OCZ live up to its own expectations with the “new” Vertex 3.20? Let’s find out.